Black Hills, Badlands & Mt. Rushmore

Today arrive in Rapid City. Enjoy a Welcome Dinner with your traveling companions. (D)

This morning visit Mt. Rushmore featuring the awesome sculptures of Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln. Each face is 60 feet high and is carved into the rugged granite mountainside with intricate perfection. Continue onto the Crazy Horse Memorial, still in progress. View the giant mountainside sculpture of the famous Indian Chief astride his pony. This afternoon visit Custer State Park famous as a wildlife preserve featuring a herd of 1,500 free roaming buffalo. Experience a thrilling Buffalo Jeep Safari in search of some of the herd. Enjoy dinner at the famous State Game Lodge, built 1920 and listed on the national register of historic places with past guests including Presidents Coolidge & Eisenhower. (B,D)

Today journey west into Wyoming to visit Devil’s Tower National Monument to view the 867 foot monolith. Return east into South Dakota to visit historic Deadwood. Meet your local guide and explore the 1876 rough and tumble gold camp & gambling town where Wild West legends were made like Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Seth Bullock. The entire city is a national historic landmark and features an incredibly preserved Main Street. Later drive through beautiful Spearfish Canyon, a scenic drive in the Black Hills. (B)

This morning travel to The Mammoth Site in Hot Springs, the museum has the greatest concentration of mammoth remains in the world. As of 2016, the remains of 61 mammoths including 58 North American Columbian and 3 Woolly mammoths had been recovered. Mammoth bones were found at the site in 1974, and a museum and building enclosing the site were established. Next visit one of Rapid City’s newest attractions, the city-owned $12 million The Journey Museum which traces the geology of the Black Hills and tells the story of the people who inhabited these lands. The Journey features four museums including the Sioux Indian Museum. Enjoy the remainder of the day at your own pace. (B)

Today visit and drive through Badlands National Park, located between the White and Cheyenne Rivers. The area contains spectacular examples of weathering, erosion, fantastic ridges, cliffs and canyons of variegated color. Later explore the unusual and well-known Wall Drug Store, famous for its “Free Ice Water”. This afternoon visit the Fort Hays Dances with Wolves Movie Set to see some of the original buildings used in the Oscar winning film. Later at the same location enjoy a fun filled Chuckwagon Supper & Cowboy Show. (B,D)

This morning enjoy a short drive to Hill City to explore Main Street and board the 1880 Train for a rail journey through history & scenery. The 1880 Train is an authentic narrow gauge railroad dating back to the Black Hills Gold Rush. Tonight’s special Farewell Dinner is at the K-Bar S Lodge nestled in the beautiful Black Hills just outside Keystone. Following dinner experience Mt. Rushmore at Night to see this American treasure illuminated in a whole new light. (B,D)

Today depart from Rapid City filled with wonderful memories of your Black Hills, Badlands & Mt. Rushmore Tour. (B)